Chapter 988: Chapter 988

Ye Qing took the black pill without any hesitation and swallowed it directly into his stomach, without considering whether the Gu God might harm him.

In fact, given Ye Qing's current situation, the Gu God had no need to harm him. The twin Gu larvae in his body had already started showing signs of hatching. If the Gu God really wanted him dead, he just needed to wait an hour and Ye Qing would succumb to the twin Gu larvae. Why bother to harm him deliberately?

After taking the black pill, the Gu God took out some silver needles and began acupuncture treatment on Ye Qing. Ye Qing barely managed to hold on at first, but after a while, his eyelids felt increasingly heavy. Before long, he slowly drifted into sleep.

Seeing Ye Qing completely asleep, a gleam flashed in the eyes of the Gu God. He did not continue treating Ye Qing but instead picked up Ye Qing's Seven-Star Ancient Sword and slowly caressed it.

"Seven-Star Ancient Sword! So, this is the Seven-Star Ancient Sword!" The Gu God's eyes flashed with bright light, his face beaming with excitement. If Ye Qing were still awake, he would have been very astonished, for even the Gu God of the Miao Borderlands recognized this Seven-Star Ancient Sword?

The Gu God played with the Seven-Star Ancient Sword for a while before turning his head to look at Ye Qing, his eyes flashing with an unusual light. He placed the Seven-Star Ancient Sword back where it was and casually picked up the silver needles again to continue treating Ye Qing.

Meanwhile, Huo Lie left Zhenmu Palace angrily with Huo Ying and Zhou Yuliang, and went straight back to where the Huoyu Dong people lived. Here, everyone in the Huo Family was waiting at home, and upon seeing Huo Lie return in frustration, they all looked surprised, not knowing what had happened at Zhenmu Palace. However, no one dared to ask, for who would dare provoke Huo Lie, who was in such a rage?

Huo Ying stood beside Huo Lie, equally filled with anger and unwillingness. She clenched her teeth and, after remaining silent for a long time, finally couldn't help but say, "Father, that Han man is outright slandering me; I've never even seen his so-called wife!"

Huo Lie glanced at Huo Ying and frowned, saying, "Regardless of wives or not, these Han people are treacherous by nature, simply unreasonable. For dealing with such people, it would be best to kill them outright. What's most detestable is that Gu God, who holds power over the Miaojiang Seventy-Two Dong but does nothing for the Miao people, allowing that Han man to have his way in the Miao Borderlands, and even using the authority of the Supreme Gu Mother to threaten others. Utterly abominable."

Beside him, Zhou Yuliang spoke softly, "In fact, the power of Fire Dong Master is definitely not beneath that of the Gu God, so why endure such grievances?"

Huo Lie looked at Zhou Yuliang, slightly furrowing his brows. Although he had spoken rather kindly in Zhenmu Palace, expressing his gratitude to Zhou Yuliang, the truth was that Huo Lie harbored a deep-seated wariness and hostility towards Han people. Even though Zhou Yuliang saved his daughter, he remained guarded against Zhou Yuliang, and if not for the sake of appearances, fearing others would call him ungrateful, he would never have let Zhou Yuliang accompany the people of the Huo Family.

Huo Ying retorted indignantly, "So what if we don't want to endure his grievances? He is the Gu God, the envoy of the Supreme Gu Mother, and the master of the Miaojiang Seventy-Two Dong. While Father is a Dong Master, you can't just ignore the hierarchy!"

"Huo Ying, you're wrong there!" Huo Lie said solemnly, "Though he is an envoy of the Supreme Gu Mother, he is not the master of the Miaojiang Seventy-Two Dong. In Miaojiang, there's only one master, and that is the Supreme Holy Mother, whose position cannot be replaced by anyone!"

Even though Huo Lie was hot-tempered and very assertive in his speech and actions, when it came to mentioning the Gu Mother, his words were filled with respect and humility. In fact, everyone in the Miao Borderlands was like him, holding deep respect for the Gu Mother from the bottom of their hearts. Because Miaojiang had been able to stand tall until today, all thanks to the efforts of all the past Gu Mothers.

Though a Gu Mother only appears once every few centuries, each one is unrivaled in the world, and their existence alone is enough to keep the Miao Borderlands flourishing for centuries. Even after passing, the prosperity of Miaojiang during their era would last for a time before declining, waiting until the next Gu Mother appeared. This cycle is what has kept Miao Borderlands thriving endlessly.

Zhou Yuliang asked, "But now that there isn't a Gu Mother, can't the Miaojiang Gu God command the entire Miaojiang?"

"Hmph, the title of Gu God is just a name. If not for being beneath the Gu Mother Hall, the Gu God would be on equal footing with the Dong Masters of the Seventy-Two Dong, nothing significant!" Huo Lie snorted coldly, "To command the entire Miaojiang? No one but the Gu Mother can achieve that!"

Zhou Yuliang slowly nodded, his eyes gleaming, though it was unclear what he was thinking.

"Father..." At that moment, a young man ran in from outside and whispered, "The Fire Sang girl... she seems not to have followed us..."

Huo Lie frowned, looked up, and angrily said, "Where did she go?"

The young man whispered, "I don't know either. Last night, when we met those two Dong people, we intentionally didn't let her come. Later, when we chased that Han man to Zhenmu Dong, we didn't go back to get her. Could Fire Sang girl still be in that small forest?"

"This useless fool is unbelievably stupid!" Huo Ying gritted her teeth and said, "She's alone in the grove, waiting for us to return. Can't she come out looking for us? She's such a waste, a complete burden alive!"

The young man looked a bit embarrassed, glanced at Huo Lie, and whispered, "Father, should we send someone back to look for her? With the Ten Thousand Gu Festival these days, there must be many former Gu masters passing by. If she gets caught and used for Gu experiments, it could be dangerous."

Huo Lie was silent for a moment, just about to speak when Huo Ying sharply interrupted, "Send someone back to find her? Are you crazy? The Ten Thousand Gu Festival is about to start. How can Father afford to get distracted now? That Fire Sang girl, it would be best if she died; it would end everything, no more burden from her. Forget about her!"

"Oh!" the young man responded and was about to turn and leave when Huo Lie finally spoke up.

"Go back and look for her," Huo Lie instructed, "after all, she is your sister."

The young man looked at Huo Ying, then at Huo Lie, his face full of astonishment. He never expected Huo Lie would actually ask him to go back and find the Fire Sang girl. After all, Huo Lie usually had no fondness for her.

"Father..." Huo Ying was also utterly shocked and was about to speak when Huo Lie suddenly glared at her with a stern voice, "The Fire Sang girl was born from the same womb as you. Though her appearance is ugly, she is still your sister by blood. Bullying her daily is one thing—but how can you wish for her to die?"

Huo Ying hadn't expected to be reprimanded over this, her face blushed but she didn't dare to retort.

Huo Lie turned to the young man and gave him a look, causing the young man to jump in fright before hurriedly running off to find the Fire Sang girl.

Watching the young man gradually disappearing from view, Huo Ying was filled with anger but did not dare to express it. She knew her father Huo Lie's character—although hot-tempered, impulsive in actions, he was absolutely caring of family. The Fire Sang girl, although often bullied within the Huo family, was alive till now thanks to Huo Lie. Otherwise, with the Fire family people's attitude towards her, she would've been dead long ago.

Huo Lie, of course, noticed Huo Ying's displeasure. He sighed and waved, saying, "Alright, you may go. Tomorrow's the Ten Thousand Gu Festival. It's unfortunate that one of your snake lizards is dead. The remaining one is not enough to participate in the festival. You should sit this one out!"

"Father..." Huo Ying was anxious and said, "If I don't participate this time, who among the Huo family's younger generation can represent us?"

"Your brother is old enough. He will participate this time. You prepare yourself for the next one," Huo Lie finished and stood up. "I've made my decision. There's nothing more to say. Off you go to rest. For tomorrow's Ten Thousand Gu Festival, I don't want any disturbances for the Huo people!"

Huo Lie left directly, and Huo Ying watched him walk away, stomping her feet in frustration. But since it was Huo Lie's decision, she didn't dare to protest. After all, Huo Lie was the head of the Huo family.

Zhou Yuliang watched from the side, and upon seeing Huo Ying's expression, a faint, subtle smile appeared in his eyes. He walked over, gently took Huo Ying's hand, and said softly, "Let it go, Ying Mei. Father surely has his reasons for making such a decision. You should take a break this time around and shine in the next festival!"

Zhou Yuliang was quite the character, calling Huo Lie 'Father' right in front of Huo Ying, treating himself like Huo Lie's son-in-law, shamelessly so. Yet, girls seemed drawn to such shamelessness—Huo Ying was very satisfied with his address.

"How is that the same?" Huo Ying said angrily, "Although Miaojiang has the Ten Thousand Gu Festival every year, the grand celebration only comes once a decade. This time is particularly special. If I don't participate this year, what's the point in joining next year's ordinary one?"

Zhou Yuliang gently said, "No need to be so upset. With only one snake lizard left, joining would mean little fighting strength, risking embarrassment in a duel. I think Father's preventing you from participating for your own good!"

"It's all because of that Han person. If it weren't for him killing my snake lizard, I wouldn't be in this position!" Huo Ying said through gritted teeth, furiously, "Anyway, I must kill that Han person!"

"Don't worry, I'll help you," Zhou Yuliang lightly patted Huo Ying's shoulder and whispered in her ear, "Alright, let's talk more in the room, I have something to discuss with you."

Caught in the scent from the man beside her, Huo Ying blushed slightly, nodded lightly, and followed Zhou Yuliang into the room.